St. John's coach Dave Masur has several connections with the U.S. National Team. Photo: Damion Reid

With a head coach and starting goalkeeper from New Jersey and a forward from New Rochelle, there are bound to be local connections to the United States National Team. But Dave Masur, head coach of the St. John’s men’s soccer team, is better connected than most.

Masur has known head coach Bob Bradley for years, going back to his Union Lancers days, he played with goalkeeper Tim Howard on the North Jersey Imperials and coached forward Edson Buddle on the Hewlett-Lawrence soccer club.

“Being able to watch players develop and grow from being very young and being able to contribute in such a way on the field, it’s always very exciting,” Masur said. “To have such a great relationship with Bob is awesome. Everyone is rooting for him and the team. We all know he’s the right guy. He’s done a great job and will continue to do a great job.”

Masur, a two-time Division I coach of the year who led the Red Storm to their first-ever NCAA title in 1996, has known Bradley for more than 20 years. Bradley worked with legendary Seton Hall coach Manny Schellscheidt at the Lancers and became the Princeton coach in 1985.

Masur started his coaching career at Rutgers, where he was a two-time All-American, went on to Montclair State University and finally to St. John’s in 1991.

“He’s a soccer aficionado,” Masur said of Bradley. “He has such great honesty with his players, great integrity and I think he coaches from that platform. That provides a true assessment of the team and the players and, at times, a very professional look because players always know they’re trying to grow and get better. Bob is never satisfied and I think that went into some of the preparation into the World Cup team.”

Although Bradley has risen in the coaching ranks, from an assistant coach at D.C. United under Bruce Arena to the head coach at the Chicago Fire, MetroStars and Chivas USA to his current position with the U.S. National Team, he hasn’t changed his personality or his approach, according to Masur.

“He’s the same person as he was, always interested in soccer, always talking about it and really creating a higher standard for everybody on the practice field, whether that be at a small youth practice or the men’s national team,” Masur said.

Masur tried to recruit Howard to St. John’s out of North Brunswick Township HS, but instead the goalkeeper decided to skip college and signed on with the Imperials of the USISL, coached by Tim Mulqueen, who also was the goalkeeping coach of the MetroStars.

Howard was only briefly teammates with Masur on the Imperials and after six appearances, Howard was signed by Major League Soccer and played for the MetroStars. Howard became a standout with the MetroStars, playing with Manchester United and Everton in the English Premier League and was one of the stars of the United States 1-1 draw with England Saturday.

“His overall athleticism, his ability to cover the goal and really his confidence to want to be a great player, not just a good player, that always stood out in Timmy and continues to stand out,” Masur said. “He’s pushed himself to a level where he is considered one of the top 10 goalkeepers in the world.”

While Howard has been cleared to play after his collision with England’s Emile Heskey, Masur said a rib injury is especially tough for a goalkeeper “because you’re always exposed to some level of physical contact. I think it’s actually a pretty significant injury, whether it’s a bruise or a crack, to try and deal with.”

At around the same time he played with Howard, Masur was coaching a young Buddle on the Hewlett-Lawrence Soccer Club. After just one year at State Fair Community College in Missouri, Buddle signed with the Long Island Rough Riders, then of the A-League, at the age of 19.

“He was a great young talent with a great ability to strike at goal and score even back then,” said Masur, who also played against Edson’s father, Winston. “Watching his progress, he became a professional at a very young age, which is a hard thing to do because there’s always those growing pains you have to deal with.”

Buddle had plenty to deal with on and off the field before hitting his stride with the Los Angeles Galaxy, scoring 34 goals in 70 appearances. His white-hot start this season – he scored a league-high nine goals – earned him an invite to Bradley’s training camp and eventually a spot on the World Cup roster.

“I don’t think Edson was shooting for that,” Masur said. “He was shooting to just remain one of the better players on the LA team, keep his focus and really try to do well in the league. It’s a credit to Coach Bradley, who has done a great job with his pool of players, giving people opportunities.”

And Masur has had an opportunity to watch and cheer for his colleague, former teammate and former player from afar. He said the United States has come a long way since 1990, when a group of inexperienced recent college graduates brought the country back to the World Cup after a 50 year hiatus, but he warns about heightened expectations after the England draw.

“The main thing is just to get out of the group,” Masur said. “Tomorrow’s game will be tough, the next game will be tough, I think any World Cup game is tough. I don’t think many people gave Greece a chance to beat Nigeria and then you turn around and look at Switzerland beating Spain. I still think we’re a much more mature team than we’ve been… but certainly [it’s too soon] to say we’re a favorite.”